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July 2006
Workforce develops as main focus for BioOhio 2006
This year's conference will feature statewide bioscience career fair
Nearly 700 bioscience-related organizations call Ohio home. To ensure growth for these organizations, as well as those that will launch or relocate in Ohio, a dependable and diverse supply of qualified employees is critical.
In late October at the Hilton Columbus, BioOhio 2006: Building the Bioscience Workforce will apply two-fold focus to the workforce issue. On Monday, Oct. 23, Omeris will hold Ohio's first bioscience-only Career Fair, featuring dozens of Ohio bioscience employers and attracting job seekers from Ohio and surrounding states. Omeris staff and member committees currently are working out details, which will be announced in August. The BioOhio Opening Reception will take place later Monday evening.
Tuesday, Oct. 24, will be devoted to speakers and panelists from across the bioscience industry continuum—corporate, research, education, and government—for discussion of workforce and recruiting challenges, opportunities, collaboration, and ideas. Look for agenda and registration details next month.
Omeris wants to thank the following members assisting us in BioOhio planning through several subcommittees: Eric Stahlberg, Tim Nolan, Andrew Johnson, Marc Cloutier, Mike Triplett, Neil Chaudhary, Barba Fant, Joan Herbers, Lisa Delp, Paula Gomez Farrell, and George Nelson.
Promoting Ohio bioscience to the world
Governor Taft joins Omeris-led contingent at BIO 2006 Convention
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| Ohio Governor Bob Taft conducting an interview with Pharmaceutical Insider's Managing Editor Richard Merli at Omeris' Bio in Ohio booth. |
Nearly 20,000 people from 62 countries met up in Chicago in early April for the world's largest bioscience conference, BIO's Annual International Convention. Among the throngs, Omeris and friends waved the Bio in Ohio flag, billing the state and its bioscience-related organizations as ideal partners for growth and investment.
Ohio Governor Bob Taft scheduled a full day in Chicago to tout the state's supportive environment for bioscience businesses. He was one of 12 governors to attend BIO 2006. Omeris arranged several meetings for the Governor with key media outlets, foreign delegates, and out-of-state company executives.
Ohio's presence at BIO 2006 included a 400 sq. ft. exhibit booth, recognition as a major sponsor, and an "Ohio Night at BIO" reception at Navy Pier sponsored by Omeris-member Squire, Sanders & Dempsey. The reception alone attracted nearly 300 VIP guests from 8 countries. Booth partners included the Ohio Department of Development, Team NEO, the Columbus Chamber, and OARDC/ATECH.
Next year the BIO International Convention will be held in Boston May 6-9, 2007 with the theme of “Science Converges. Business Emerges.”
Registration now open for BIO Mid-America VentureForum
Registration for the BIO Mid-America VentureForum, to be held Sept. 25-27 in Cleveland, is now open on the event web site. Omeris members and members of other participating state bioscience associations are eligible for the Mid-America member discount rate.
The fourth annual BIO Mid-America VentureForum is the largest Midwest bioscience investor and partnering forum, bringing together privately held bioscience companies, venture capitalists, academic institutions, government groups and executives from the pharmaceutical, chemical and agribusiness industries. Biotech and medical device companies—predominantly from the Midwest—seeking seed to late-stage funding will present business plans to venture capitalists and potential partners from across the nation.
To date, 16 Ohio companies have submitted applications to present. Applications will be accepted online throughout July and into August, but presenting company slots are limited.
In addition to keynote sessions and company presentations, the conference includes workshops covering current issues important to the bioscience and financial communities. Workshop topics will include state-based bioscience investments, alternative capital sources, globalization, and partnering with public institutions.
Early program and speaker details will be published online in late July.
STERIS Group President joins Omeris Board
In May Omeris announced that Charles Immel, senior vice president and group president of STERIS Corporation’s Healthcare division, has joined the organization’s Board of Trustees.
Mr. Immel is responsible for sales, marketing, manufacturing, development, and support functions for STERIS’s global healthcare business. This group has approximately $800 million in annual revenue and includes capital equipment, consumables, and service provided to hospital sterilization departments, operating theaters, and critical care departments.
A graduate of the Ohio State University, Mr. Immel joined STERIS Corporation in May 2001 as senior vice president, Sales and Marketing, and president, Commercial Operations. Before joining STERIS, he held the position of vice president and general manager of Baxter Healthcare Corporation’s Therapeutic Commercial Business in Europe (1998 to 2001). He also served Baxter Healthcare as vice president and general manager, Plasma Commercial Business; vice president, Global Marketing and Business Development, Recombinant Protein Business; and general manager, Japanese Biotechnology Business.
The Omeris Board of Trustees also includes: John Bantle, II, PhD, Ohio University; Timothy Biro, Ohio Innovation Fund; Thomas Boat, MD, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Research Foundation; Mark Collar, Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals; Mark Coticchia, Case Western Reserve University; Tony Dennis, PhD, Omeris; Mike Hooven, AtriCure; Jane Henney, MD, University of Cincinnati; Peter Kleinhenz, CID Equity Partners; John Rice, PhD, Triathlon Medical Ventures; Richard Rosen, Battelle; Fred Sanfilippo, MD, PhD, The Ohio State University; David Scholl, PhD, Diagnostic Hybrids; Jim Scozzie, PhD, BioEnterprise; and Don Wetherhold, RxPedite.
Omeris awards bioscience student scholarships
In conjunction with the Ohio Academy of Science’s 58th Annual State Science Day, Omeris recently awarded bioscience scholarships to two northeast Ohio high school students.
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| Bio in Ohio scholarship winners Hope Jeffries (top) and Alicia Petrarca. |
Hope Jeffries, a junior at Glen Oak High School in Canton, won a $1,000 Bio in Ohio scholarship to be used at any Ohio college or university for her outstanding project on the geographic and genetic variation of the Lasis mackloti, or Macklot’s Python.
Alicia Petrarca, a senior at Beaumont School in Cleveland Heights, won a $300 Bio in Ohio scholarship for her exemplary research and presentation of the antibacterial properties of essential oils.
Held on May 6 at the Ohio State University’s French Field House, State Science Day featured more than 1,000 Ohio students in grades 7-12 who qualified through local school science days or science fairs. With more than 100 different scholarships and awards collectively valued at $1.7 million up for grabs, the student competitors were evaluated on their scientific research and communication skills. Projects from 22 high school juniors and seniors were judged for Omeris’ Bio in Ohio scholarship awards.
In addition to the Omeris scholarships, three bioscience-related scholarships were sponsored by the Ohio Department of Development. Andrew Lee, a senior at Upper Arlington High School, Emily Buerschen, a sophomore at Chaminade Julienne High School (Dayton), and Megan Cochran, a senior at Mentor High School, each received a Governor’s Award for Excellence in Biotechnology scholarship.
Omeris scholarship funds were generated through a silent auction of donated items during BioOhio 2005.
State Science Day 2007 will be held May 11-12.
Omeris member company reaches out to area students
Athens-based Diagnostic Hybrids (DHI) rediscovered their “inner kid” on May 11, when a group of third graders from Morgan West Elementary visited DHI’s facilities to learn and have fun with science during four sessions presented by the R&D and manufacturing staff.
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| (top) DHI's Nate Chapman and April Brandon open some eyes. (bottom) Dave Scholl and the DHI team with Ms. Wells and her students. |
DHI staff taught principles of chemistry and biology through games and hands-on experiments. The students enjoyed building a cell model with play-doh, completing an antibody-virus-cell binding puzzle, using fluorescence and light microscopes, drawing viruses, and making slime.
The children learned how to identify basic parts of a cell and the way they look in a microscope, the importance of hand washing, cleanliness and safety in the lab, how dry ice and liquid nitrogen work, and how bacteria, viruses, and parasites in the environment can cause illnesses.
Diagnostic Hybrids innovates, develops, manufactures and sells diagnostic products for a wide range of respiratory diseases, herpes infections and specific viral and thyroid diseases. Located in the Ohio University Research and Enterprise Park, DHI employs more than 150 people at its state-of-the-art manufacturing and research and development facility.
According to teacher Corinne Wells, her third graders were abuzz and full of questions on the way back to school. "How old do you have to be to become a microbiologist?,” one asked. “Can we do this again? Science is so cool!” another exclaimed. And one enlightened learner declared “I know what I want to be when I grow up."
The enthusiasm was shared by DHI's staff, who enjoyed the opportunity to spark children's interest in science. "It was an experience that benefitted our staff as much as it benefitted our third grade visitors," said DHI President & CEO David Scholl.
Omeris applauds DHI for its initiative as well as its genuine interest in the community. And we encourage other Ohio bioscience companies to seek similar ways to enlighten local students. If you would like to know more about how DHI organized the third grade field trip, contact DHI Marketing Associate Talia Szymanski at 740/597-2928.
Welcome new Omeris members
Omeris membership is experiencing unparalleled growth! We’d like to thank the following new members for supporting Ohio’s bioscience progress. And a special thank you to former Omeris Board member Bill Sanford, who donated funds to sponsor 15 student memberships.
New Omeris Members since March 2006:
- IntElect Medical
- Alkermes
- Edward Howard & Co.
- iBeam Solutions
- MedPresence Corp.
- McNees Wallace & Nurick, LLC
- PhRMA
- Analiza, Inc.
- n-tara, Inc.
- TrialMinded
- X2 Medical Media
- Q-Innovative, Inc.
- Integrated Bioscience Solutions
- Mork Process
- SCA Packaging N.A. Thermosafe Brands
- ATECH
- Chateaux Software
- Airgas
- Hicks Partners
- A.G. Edwards
- Ignatios Vakalis
- Michael J. Martin
- Arjun Venkatesh
- Chris Hock
- Chitra Edwin
- Rashmi Nemade
- Jordan Dale
- Yu Dong
- Vanessa Everding
- Yanina Grinberg
- Kathleen Jagodnik
- Sachan Java
- Yan Jin
- Heather Herd
- Christopher Khoury
- Aryavarta Kumar
- Jeffrey Levengood
- Janice Makinen
- Ben McDowell
- John O'Flaherty
- Chris Pulliam
- Ken Rys
- Olivier Salvado
New Member Benefits: BIO Business Solutions has added new services to their program. All Omeris members are eligible for these benefits, including 401(k) plans, group employee benefits insurance, and discounted employee screening. Learn more at www.biobusinessolutions.com/oh.asp.
Bioscience events in Ohio
Once again, fall features several significant bioscience events in Ohio, most notably the BIO Mid-America VentureForum in September and BioOhio in October.
A National Dialogue on Biomedical Conflicts of Interest and Innovation Management
September 20, 2006, at the InterContinental Hotel & Conference Center, Cleveland
2006 BIO Mid America Venture Forum
September 25-27, 2006, at the InterContinental Hotel & Conference Center, Cleveland
BioOhio 2006
October 23-24, 2006, at the Hilton Columbus
For details on these and other Ohio bioscience events: www.omeris.org/programs/events.asp
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